Rumor: Casting Call Hints at Portal 2 Plot

Elderly billionaire supposedly at heart of sequel plot.

Last year's surprise hit Portal became known for a lot of things: inventive puzzles, its geek-hit ending theme song, and a humorous plot starring the homicidal artificial intelligence GLaDOS. We've heard that Portal 2 is on the way, but details about how it will pick up from the plot of the first game have been totally absent. A new rumor is circulating that could shed light on it.

Kotaku reports that a tipster found a casting call on subscriber-only site Breakdown Express, detailing a role for the upcoming game. Be warned that if this rumor pans out, the description spoils what look to be major plot details:

"[CAVE JOHNSON (ECCENTRIC DEAD BILLIONAIRE)] Cave Johnson is a character for a new game in the Portal series from Valve software. Portal is a dark comedy; the role will require comedic timing, with occasional dramatic moments. Age: early 60s. He is founder and CEO of a successful applied science company, a self-made billionaire who's learned to trust his gut and doesn't sweat the detailsis [sic] a big picture thinker. He might not know how science works, but he knows how people work. Used to getting what he wants. Extroverted, enthusiastic and opinionated. High energy: life is an adventure he's happy to be on. A born salesman, a leader, an evangelist. People trust him, even when his plans are clearly dangerous. Speaks with a slight Southern/Western accent (natural, not too broad). He uses a warm, homespun delivery to put people at their ease. he doesn't accept the responsibility that comes with his power. Either he doesn't see or chooses not to see the ramifications of his actions. Goes from sidekick to principle antagonist. Sarts [sic] to lose his grip on his humanity as the story progresses. As he isolates himself from the people around him, he loses touch with reality."

So he's dead, but starts as a sidekick? Your guess is as good as ours, folks. Whether this means GLaDOS will be gone altogether or simply a role in addition to this one is impossible to tell, but if this Howard Hughes-esque figure replaces GLaDOS altogether, Valve may have some sad gamers on their hands.

thanks Donarmageddon!

Script also available

There's also a sample of the dialogue on Kombo:
http://www.kombo.com/article.php?artid=11223
Because I have access to both Breakdown Express AND Sides Express (where you can get the sample script) I can confirm that this is, in fact, fo realz.